1     
RESORT COMMUNITIES TRANSIENT ROOM TAX

2     
AMENDMENTS

3     
2019 GENERAL SESSION

4     
STATE OF UTAH

5     
Chief Sponsor: Bradley G. Last

6     
Senate Sponsor: Evan J. Vickers

7     

8     LONG TITLE
9     General Description:
10          This bill amends provisions related to the transient room tax.
11     Highlighted Provisions:
12          This bill:
13          ▸     allows a county legislative body to use a portion of the county's transient room tax
14     revenue to pay for emergency medical services in a town that is a resort community;
15     and
16          ▸     makes technical and conforming changes.
17     Money Appropriated in this Bill:
18          None
19     Other Special Clauses:
20          None
21     Utah Code Sections Affected:
22     AMENDS:
23          17-31-2, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2018, Chapter 240
24          17-31-5.5, as last amended by Laws of Utah 2016, Chapter 353
25     

26     Be it enacted by the Legislature of the state of Utah:
27          Section 1. Section 17-31-2 is amended to read:
28          17-31-2. Purposes of transient room tax and expenditure of revenue -- Purchase
29     or lease of facilities -- Mitigating impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions --
30     Issuance of bonds.
31          (1) As used in this section:
32          (a) "Eligible town" means a town that:
33          (i) is located within a county that has a national park within or partially within the
34     county's boundaries; and
35          (ii) imposes a resort communities tax authorized by Section 59-12-401.
36          (b) "Town" means a municipality that is classified as a town in accordance with
37     Section 10-2-301.
38          (c) "Transient room tax" means a tax at a rate not to exceed 4.25% authorized by
39     Section 59-12-301.
40          [(1)] (2) Any county legislative body may impose the transient room tax [provided for
41     in Section 59-12-301] for the purposes of:
42          (a) establishing and promoting recreation, tourism, film production, and conventions;
43          (b) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, maintaining, or operating:
44          (i) convention meeting rooms;
45          (ii) exhibit halls;
46          (iii) visitor information centers;
47          (iv) museums;
48          (v) sports and recreation facilities including practice fields, stadiums, and arenas; and
49          (vi) related facilities;
50          (c) acquiring land, leasing land, or making payments for construction or infrastructure
51     improvements required for or related to the purposes listed in Subsection [(1)] (2)(b); and
52          (d) as required to mitigate the impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions in
53     counties of the fourth, fifth, and sixth class, paying for:
54          (i) solid waste disposal operations;
55          (ii) emergency medical services;
56          (iii) search and rescue activities;
57          (iv) law enforcement activities; and
58          (v) road repair and upgrade of:
59          (A) class B roads, as defined in Section 72-3-103;
60          (B) class C roads, as defined in Section 72-3-104; or
61          (C) class D roads, as defined in Section 72-3-105.
62          (3) (a) The county legislative body of a county that imposes a transient room tax at a
63     rate of 3% or less may expend the revenue generated as provided in Subsection (4), after
64     making any reduction required by Subsection (6).
65          (b) The county legislative body of a county that imposes a transient room tax at a rate
66     that exceeds 3% or increases the rate of transient room tax above 3% may expend:
67          (i) the revenue generated from the transient room tax at a rate of 3% as provided in
68     Subsection (4), after making any reduction required by Subsection (6); and
69          (ii) the revenue generated from the portion of the rate that exceeds 3%:
70          (A) for any combination of the purposes described in Subsections (2) and (5); and
71          (B) regardless of the limitation on expenditures for the purposes described in
72     Subsection (4).
73          [(2)] (4) [Except as provided in Subsection (4)] Subject to Subsection (6), a county
74     may not expend more than 1/3 of the [revenues] revenue generated by [the] a rate of transient
75     room tax [provided in Section 59-12-301] that does not exceed 3%, for any combination of the
76     following purposes:
77          (a) (i) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, maintaining, or operating:
78          (A) convention meeting rooms;
79          (B) exhibit halls;
80          (C) visitor information centers;
81          (D) museums;
82          (E) sports and recreation facilities including practice fields, stadiums, and arenas; and
83          (F) related facilities; and
84          (ii) acquiring land, leasing land, or making payments for construction or infrastructure
85     improvements required for or related to the purposes described in Subsection (2)(a)(i);
86          (b) as required to mitigate the impacts of recreation, tourism, or conventions in
87     counties of the fourth, fifth, and sixth class, to pay for:
88          (i) solid waste disposal operations;
89          (ii) emergency medical services;
90          (iii) search and rescue activities;
91          (iv) law enforcement activities; and
92          (v) road repair and upgrade of:
93          (A) class B roads, as defined in Section 72-3-103;
94          (B) class C roads, as defined in Section 72-3-104; or
95          (C) class D roads, as defined in Section 72-3-105; or
96          (c) making the annual payment of principal, interest, premiums, and necessary reserves
97     for any or the aggregate of bonds authorized under Subsection [(3)] (5).
98          [(3)] (5) (a) The county legislative body may issue bonds or cause bonds to be issued,
99     as permitted by law, to pay all or part of any costs incurred for the purposes set forth in
100     Subsection [(2)] (4)(a) or (b) that are permitted to be paid from bond proceeds.
101          (b) [Except as provided in Subsection (4), if the revenues] If a county legislative body
102     does not need the revenue generated by the transient room tax [provided in Section 59-12-301
103     are not needed] for payment of principal, interest, premiums, and reserves on bonds issued as
104     provided in Subsection [(2)] (4)(c), the county legislative body shall expend [those revenues as
105     provided] that revenue for the purposes described in Subsection [(1)] (2), subject to the
106     limitation of Subsection [(2)] (4).
107          [(4) If, on or after October 1, 2006, a county legislative body imposes a tax or increases
108     the rate of a tax in accordance with Section 59-12-301 at a rate that exceeds 3%, the county
109     legislative body:]
110          [(a) may expend revenues generated by the portion of the rate that exceeds 3% for any
111     purpose described in Subsections (1) through (3); and]
112          [(b) is not subject to any limits on the amount of revenues that may be expended for a
113     purpose described in Subsection (2).]
114          (6) (a) In addition to the purposes described in Subsection (2), a county legislative
115     body may expend up to 4% of the total revenue generated by a transient room tax to pay a
116     provider for emergency medical services in one or more eligible towns.
117          (b) An emergency medical services provider means an eligible town, a local district, or
118     a special service district.
119          (c) A county legislative body shall reduce the amount that the county is authorized to
120     expend for the purposes described in Subsection (4) by subtracting the amount of transient
121     room tax revenue expended in accordance with Subsection (6)(a) from the amount of revenue
122     described in Subsection (4).
123          Section 2. Section 17-31-5.5 is amended to read:
124          17-31-5.5. Report to county legislative body -- Content.
125          (1) The legislative body of each county that imposes a transient room tax under Section
126     59-12-301 or a tourism, recreation, cultural, convention, and airport facilities tax under Section
127     59-12-603 shall [annually] prepare annually a report in accordance with Subsection (2).
128          (2) The report described in Subsection (1) shall include a breakdown of expenditures
129     into the following categories:
130          (a) for the transient room tax, identification of expenditures for:
131          (i) establishing and promoting:
132          (A) recreation;
133          (B) tourism;
134          (C) film production; and
135          (D) conventions;
136          (ii) acquiring, leasing, constructing, furnishing, or operating:
137          (A) convention meeting rooms;
138          (B) exhibit halls;
139          (C) visitor information centers;
140          (D) museums; and
141          (E) related facilities;
142          (iii) acquiring or leasing land required for or related to the purposes listed in
143     Subsection (2)(a)(ii);
144          (iv) mitigation costs as identified in Subsection 17-31-2[(1)](2)(d); and
145          (v) making the annual payment of principal, interest, premiums, and necessary reserves
146     for any or the aggregate of bonds issued to pay for costs referred to in Subsections
147     17-31-2[(2)](4)(c) and [(3)] (5)(a); and
148          (b) for the tourism, recreation, cultural, convention, and airport facilities tax,
149     identification of expenditures for:
150          (i) financing tourism promotion, which means an activity to develop, encourage,
151     solicit, or market tourism that attracts transient guests to the county, including planning,
152     product development, and advertising;
153          (ii) the development, operation, and maintenance of the following facilities as defined
154     in Section 59-12-602:
155          (A) an airport facility;
156          (B) a convention facility;
157          (C) a cultural facility;
158          (D) a recreation facility; and
159          (E) a tourist facility; and
160          (iii) a pledge as security for evidences of indebtedness under Subsection 59-12-603(3).
161          (3) A county legislative body shall provide a copy of the report described in Subsection
162     (1) to:
163          (a) the Governor's Office of Economic Development;
164          (b) its tourism tax advisory board; and
165          (c) the Office of the Legislative Fiscal Analyst.